In 1919 my grandmother signed this picture “Yours to a turn, H.B.”  H. B. is her initials, but I was wondering what Yours to a turn means.  I Googled it but did not come up with much.  I found that in 1913 Charlie Chaplin signed one of his pictures this way, and there were letters in several digitized books where the writer also wrote this salutation.  Next, I turned to a genealogy group on Facebook and asked if anyone knew what Yours to a turn meant.   I got a wide variety of answers.  Most people thought it meant perfectly, exactly right, as in the expression fits him to a T, and “to turn” to the right amount or degree.  One person suggested that person is clearly related (child?) of the person receiving the picture because they look so much alike.  I happen to like this explanation, and it is possible she originally gave this picture to her mother. That would explain how the picture found its way back to my grandmother.  She probably got it back when her mother passed away.   Several people said that Yours to a turn was commonly used in letters around 1900 give or take 10 years like we use Sincerely yours. Some said they have seen it used in personal letters they have from their family.  I had never heard of Yours to a turn used before on pictures or in letters, so I guess I learned something new today.  If anyone knows more about Yours to a turn, I welcome your thoughts.

Copyright © 2019 Gail Grunst